As part of the Monogram Club’s ongoing 100th anniversary celebration, some of the Club’s many connections to each Notre Dame program have been highlighted. This latest installment of the “Monogram Club Turns 100” series looks at how the Monogram Club and the Fighting Irish men’s soccer program have been connected throughout the years.

Men’s Soccer Monogram Moments

The Notre Dame men’s soccer program’s first varsity season was in 1977 and that squad posted a 16-1-1 record under head coach Rich Hunter.

In 2013, Notre Dame captured its first national championship with a 2-1 win over Maryland.

Men’s soccer Monogram winners Tom Crotty (‘80) and Rob Snyder (‘84) were the lead benefactors for Alumni Stadium, which opened in 2009 and is the home of the Fighting Irish men’s and women’s soccer teams.

Phil Murphy (’99) currently is serving a three-year term on the Monogram Club Board of Directors. Murphy was a co-captain, four-year Monogram winner and two-time most valuable player of the men’s soccer team. He also was a first-team academic All-American and recipient of the Byron V. Kanaley Award.

Through the Monogram Club’s team-hosting program, the men’s soccer squad was able to go on a safari and visit Victoria Falls during their trip to Zimbabwe in 2014.

Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark was awarded an honorary Monogram in 2011. Clark, who began his Fighting Irish tenure in 2001, led the program to its first national title in 2013 and also has guided Notre Dame to several conference championships.

Former head coach Mike Berticelli posthumously received an honorary Monogram in 2000. He was at the helm of the program for 10 seasons before suddenly passing away in January of 2000. Berticelli led the Irish to their first Big East title in 1996.

Notre Dame athletics and the Monogram Club hosted Matt Besler (‘09) the weekend he returned to campus in the fall of 2014. He was honored at the Louisville football game for being the first player in program history to compete in a World Cup. Besler, a four-time Monogram winner, started all four U.S. matches at the ‘14 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.